Both Companies See Plenty Of Opportunity In The Region

Both Airbus and Boeing have released their market forecasts for the Middle East at the opening of the Dubai Air Show, and both companies see reasons for optimism about airline growth in the region.

Boeing projects  that airlines in the Middle East will need an estimated 2,520 airplanes worth $450 billion by 2030. The forecast comes as the region's carriers continue to surpass global air traffic and capacity growth rates.

Boeing estimates that the Middle East's fleet of passenger airplanes will grow from a current fleet of 1,040 airplanes to a projected 2,710 airplanes, an increase of 160 percent. 34 percent of the projected demand will be for airplanes to replace current aircraft, while 66 percent will be part of fleet expansion plans as the region's airlines gear up for significant growth over the next two decades. 

"The Middle East has seen an unprecedented growth in capacity over the past 10 years and every indication points to a further, significantly large increase over the next 20 years," said Boeing Commercial Airplanes Vice President of Marketing Randy Tinseth, who presented Boeing's Current Market Outlook at the 2011 Dubai Air Show. "The region's airlines with their forward thinking approach have become a competitive force globally."

Single- and twin-aisle airplanes will account for 90 percent of the Middle East's new airplane deliveries over the 20-year period, according to the Boeing forecast. An estimated 1,160 single-aisle jets are expected to be delivered to the region during this time. The remaining ten percent is split between large airplanes and will account for 7 percent of projected demand, with an estimated 180 airplanes to be delivered to airlines in the Middle East. Regional jets will account for the remaining 3 percent.

In its report, Airbus said it expects the aircraft fleet to almost triple in the next 20 years, with carriers in the Middle East requiring 1,921 new passenger and freighter aircraft (above 100 seats) between 2011 and 2030 valued at $347.4 billion (U.S.). Of these, 1,882 are passenger aircraft valued at $336.3 billion, and 39 are freighter aircraft, with a price tag of some $11.1 billion.

The main drivers of the continued strong demand for new aircraft include fleet expansion and replacement, greater urbanisation, an increasing number of mega cities and the overall ongoing expansion of the region as a geographical hub and tourist destination. With today's aircraft capabilities every major destination around the globe is within reach of a direct flight from the Middle East.

"The Middle East remains one of the world's most robust aviation regions and this is confirmed by a 200 per cent increase in inter-regional passenger traffic over the last 10 years," said John Leahy, Airbus Chief Operating Officer, Customers. "The region is uniquely placed with more than 85 per cent of the world's population within reach of a direct flight, making the Middle East a fertile market."

FMI: www.boeing.com, www.airbus.com